A system engineering approach for the design optimization of a hydraulic active suspension

A procedure for the optimal design of an active suspension with skyhook control scheme is presented. A 15 Degrees of Freedom vehicle model has been implemented and, once correlated with test data, the control strategy has been plugged in and tuned in function of the vehicle manufacturer target requirements. Achievable performances of the vehicle equipped with active components have been estimated through the implementation of the ldquoquarter car modelrdquo, successively extended towards the full controlled vehicle. The active damper system, to be manufactured by Tenneco, has been separately modeled and the suspension design definition has been optimized with reference to performance achievements and power consumption requirements.